Juiced - PlayStation 2

Juiced is, like the other games mentioned, a street racer and has the same obsession with customising your car with both performance mods and after-market cosmetic alterations (all of which are based on real products). 7.5 trillion combinations are apparently possible, although you’ll have to trust THQ’s maths on that as its doubtful they’ve counted them personally.

What is truly unique about Juiced though is your ability to recruit and organise a team of your own racers. Special crew races are possible and you can control your team members in-race, in a similar manner to the B-spec mode in Gran Turismo 4. The show-off trick challenges are also a neat addition and a welcome alternative to the standard races.

Although it has some interesting features there are still some notable problems with Juiced, particularly in terms of the handling which is disappointingly simplistic and an uncomfortable halfway house between the likes of Gran Turismo and Ridge Racer. The artificial intelligence of rival drivers is also weak and outside of the more exotic game modes the game treads very similar ground to its rivals. As long as you’re not expecting anything too original though this is still a very competent racer. -- Harrison Dent